Tsukihime: Fatal Shadows
by Loaniss
Summary: A rock. Arcueid. Nanaya blood. The Dead Apostles.How could these be linked and drawn to one place? Four Chapters so far.
1. CHAPTER 1: UNUSUAL

**CHAPTER 1: UNUSUAL**

"Is he going to be alright?"

"Yes, my lady."

"He's just sleeping. When he wakes up he should be back to his usual bright, happy self."

He was dragged awake by the surrounding voices. He reluctantly let his eyes open, seeing if the scene was like he imagined.

He was right; the two maids of the house to his left while his sister to his right. He remained lying down as the three pairs of eyes stared at him with a slightly confused look upon their faces. He sat up, breaking the little staring session.

"Are you alright?" Asked on of the maids to his left, her face was brimmed with happiness.

"Ah, yes. I'm fine, thank you, Kohaku." He replied with a polite smile.

"Are you sure? You're not hungry? Thirsty?"

"No, Hisui. Thank you, both of you."

"No problem, Shiki!" The happier maid shouted out, "By the way, I changed your clothes."

"WHAT!?" Shiki looked down to see he was wearing light blue pyjamas with teddy bears holding balloons on them. He suddenly looked up and his face went red.

"See, Hisui, I knew he'll like them." She turned from her sister to Shiki, "she told me the plain pink ones would do, but I disagreed. So we decided on a game of Russian Roulette. I lost but - "

"ENOUGH!" Shiki's sister had slammed her fist on the side table, "Back to work, both of you!"

"Yes, Lady Akiha." They both replied in completely contrasting ways. Hisui had said it quietly with a bow. Kohaku jumped in the air with a raised fist and shouted it with determination. They both swiftly left.

Akiha watched as they left with burning rage behind her eyes. When she saw them close the door behind themselves she shut eyes and sighed relief.

"I'm glad you're OK." She said with her eyes still closed.

"So am I. You didn't have to bring me home, though. It was just another fit; they could've put me in the medic - "

"It was more than that this time, Shiki." She said with a serious tone.

This caught his attention and he leant forward.

"You didn't just have a fit. You began to act up during the school assembly." Akiha said looking into his eyes.

"How could I – I was unconscious, how can I 'act up' when I'm unconscious?" Shiki said with genuine confusion.

"It wasn't you that was acting up. It was - " She broke away and stared at the ground.

A familiar impulse flickered at the back of Shiki's mind.

"But don't worry, Shiki. It was nothing major. Nothing anyone would remember or talk about. To them, you just fainted." She said trying to comfort the worry she could see on his face.

He turned and looked at her. Her shoulder length charcoal hair hung from her head and covered her face from view as she looked at her hands.

Shiki turned away and thought.

This was unexpected. He hadn't fallen unconscious since the events that happened six months ago. As he stared away he realised he could see them…the vein-like lines on everything; both animate and inanimate objects.

"Akiha, my glasses, please." He opened is hand.

She placed the glasses in his hands before standing up.

"OK then, brother, I'll be going back to school now. If things get worse or it happens again, tell one of the two to contact me immediately." She said with firmness.

Shiki nodded and watched as she walked out. She had a certain elegance and pristine about her, although the more you were around her the more you got the impression it was a facade.

He looked at his large room. He had never got used to the excellence of the room, let alone the whole mansion he now lived in. The floor was a deep red carpet while the walls and ceiling were covered in various shades of gold, giving the whole house a fiery look.

He got out of bed and stretched. He wondered what he was going to do for the rest of the day, but it didn't take long before he decided to head back to school.

Shiki walked slowly to school, mainly due to his thoughts on the abnormalities of his life. The major one being his vision. He could see vein-like lines across all the objects he could see, alive or not. Shiki often remember during his youth that he was told the lines were not real, just a figment of his childish imagination as the adults around him said, but as he grew up he realised they weren't imaginative and were a part of his life; eventually he accepted it. But before his acceptance of uniqueness came to be something happened to him; a memory that he would often recall and never forget.

A nine year old Shiki walked along the path in the park. The lines stood out more in the summer's blessing light. As he walked he realised that sound had snuck away, as well as all the people. Shiki looked around more; he was worries growing within him. He took a step forward and bumped into something. He didn't just get knocked down it repelled him.

"What the – Huh? A kid…?

The person he had bumped into was wearing a loose white t-shirt, blue jeans and white trainers; all of which looked as though they have been worn for a while. He then noticed something, something that confirmed that the situation was now strange. The person had strikingly bright red hair and, by the looks of it, went way past her back.

Shiki stood up at once and took a few steps back, "W-who are you!? W-what do you want?" He shouted even though he wasn't that far away, though he was scared there something attracting him to the person.

"Hey kid, how did you ge – Your eyes…"

She walked towards him, Shiki didn't move. He was in fact fighting the temptation walk up to her.

She stopped front of Shiki and looked down at him, "Yep, you definitely have the eyes. Which is odd… "

This caught Shiki's attention, it confirmed to him that he wasn't crazy. He grabbed her by the coat in plea, "You know about my eyes!? Then please, help me. What are they? What are the lines?"

She stared at him for a few moments before, sighing and reaching into her pocket. "It's good I took these then, eh? But don't fret, kid. The eyes of Death Perception you have are a given gift; use them when the time is right." She took out a pair of white gloves with bright orange dots on the knuckles; she reached her whole arm into her briefcase and took out a pair of glasses that that had a peculiar gloss to them.

She kneeled down and put them on for him, "There. Is that better?"

When the glasses were on the lines were no longer there. Not just past lenses, around them too.

Shiki was left breathless, "Thank you….Thank you v-very much."

The woman smiled back, "It's best you keep them on, kid. You're just a human after all. Using something that naturally doesn't belong to you strains the body and you don't want to do that, do you?"

Shiki shook his head.

"Good. Take care of yourself, Shiki." The woman said kneeling down and looking at him with affection in her eyes. Shiki gasped as she had the most mysterious eyes he will ever see. They gave off power, yet kindness. He could see valleys of knowledge and mountains of experience within them. Not only that, but they were a sky blue colour that looked vast enough to get lost in.

She rubbed him on the head before leaving in the opposite direction.

Suddenly and unexpectedly, Shiki waved and shouted, "I'll see you again, Aoko-sensei."

Just then he realised they didn't exchange names. He went to chase after her, but then with a knock to the head sound came back Shiki turned to see a Frisbee hit him.

"Sorry." Said the thrower, before running to receive it.

Unconcerned with that Shiki looked back to see Aoko gone.

Unknowingly, the memory brought a smile to Shiki's face. He remembered being so happy at the thought that he wasn't alone in the surreal things he saw. He came to a crossing. He looked left and right and when to walk when someone had jumped on his back. It wasn't aggressive enough to be an attack and knew it was only one person.

"Hello, Arcueid." He said with a smile looking at her.

"Morning, Shiki! Why aren't you in school?" She asked not moving from his back.

"Oh, I had an anaemic attack. I was taken home while I was unconscious. I'm fine now, and going back there now." He said adjusting himself for her weight.

"Ooo, Shiki can't you come over and quickly make me breakfast." She asked as she was a young child.

Shiki lowered his head. He knew it was coming, "But, Arcueid, my school is just ar - "

"Thanks, Shiki! You're the best!" She shouted before jumping off him and dragging him in the opposite direction he was heading, "It's good because I have to show you something too!"

Shiki couldn't reply as he was struggling to keep up with her speed. At times his feet didn't touch the ground, which made him worry if anyone would see them moving at such unnatural speeds.

"Ahh…Another amazing breakfast. You're fantastic, Shiki" She exclaimed rubbing her stomach with one hand and picking her with the other.

"No problem." Shiki smiled back, he turned and sighed, "Oh, what could I possibly tell my teacher? I bet some of the students could see me from the window…" He continued to wash the dishes while staring outside. He noticed someone on the roof on the other block. Suddenly, his vision went hazy and began to lose feeling in his body except for right hand. It began to move: move out of his control. He slowly slipped inside his pocket and reached for his knife. A smile crept up on his face…

"Shiki!"

Shiki snapped out of it and looked around in confusion.

"Shiki, are you OK? I called you several times…" Arcueid had got up and now standing behind him. She sounded worried; a side that Shiki rarely saw.

"I'm fine…Another attack that's all. This time, not so major…" He said closing his eyes and shaking it off. He opened them again; the figure on the building was gone.

"Are you sure?"

Shiki slowly nodded. He suddenly realised he was sweating and went to wipe it with his hand when he suddenly noticed that his knife was in his hand and open too. Something was going on, two anaemic attacks in the same day was rare for him. Something inside told him it wasn't his health.

Arcueid opened the door and Shiki stepped out, "I'll come by after school, then you can show me what you had to show me, OK?"

Arcueid nodded, "Alright…" The look of worry was still evident on her face.

Shiki turned and left. Arcueid shut the door and went to the table where there was a tablet with an ancient language on it; a language Arcueid herself had long forgotten. She went to touch it, but sense told her not to. She put on gloves and placed the tablet in a box before storing it away.


	2. CHAPTER 2: SUSPICION

**CHAPTER 2: SUSPICION**

Sion Eltnam Atlasia.

She was once an alchemist at an advanced civilisation that lived away in secret. Upon finding out that vampires existed they sent a small group to wipe them out, Sion was a part of the group. The group were killed and she was the sole survivor, but rather going home and being welcomed with open arms she was rejected and hunted down on the discovery that she was bitten and a vampire herself. Since then she has been searching the world for ways she can become fully human again. She has also been searching for the vampire that gave her the demonic curse, Warakia, to get revenge on what he had done to her.

Since then she hasn't found a complete cure, but has found a serum that immensely weakens the blood lust and even when she does turn into a vampire the blood lust has become so weak that her will is strong enough to break free at times.

Now something unexpected has happened. She has now sensed a number of strong beings come into existence. Perhaps this is the one of the few times she was grateful for her curse.

She now looks for them, not knowing if they are friend or foe to find out of they know if there is a way to completely revert back into being a human.

"Date. Friday, the twenty third of March. Time. Two thirteen a.m. Place. Centre Park, the picnic area. It looks like my searches have brought me back to the town was in seven months ago. By the looks of it Warakia wasn't the only one that was interested in this place. There's also something going on…I've been drawn here. Not just from my search, but a feeling, an urge is calling me to this place. It's not clear why but I'm guessing that would come later on in the future. Right now, I'm following - "

A snap of a twig from behind her, she swung around with her gun at the ready.

"Who's there!?..."

No response.

"…I'll leave it here for now. End of log."

She pressed the ear piece and it switched off. With her guard still up, Sion looked around. A small explosion came from her left. She dive rolled out of the way. She looked, but found that whole area had been covered in red smoke. The smoke danced towards her, and when it came inches away from her skin, she sensed what it was and jumped out of the way. She landed on a thick branch of a nearby tree and observed how the red smoke spread out and covered everything below her.

It eventually cleared and she could see that it had left a red substance all over the place. When everything looked clear she got tissue and covered her mouth and nose.

She jumped and landed next to a rock that had small piles, no larger than half a centimetre of the powdery substance. She reached into her pockets and got a small, clear container and took a sample. She then held it at her eyes' height.

"It's powdered blood." A voice from behind her. Sion quickly turned to see it was someone she had seen before.

"What are you doing here?" Sion asked, she suddenly lost interests in the red substance. The air around them thickened.

"The same could be asked for you, vampire. But then again, I guess it would be no surprise on what the answer would be." The female voice replied coldly. Her young looking face was shaped to her serious tone. She wore a long blue overall, the cuffs were white with a blue cross on it. This was similar to the collar and the shoulder of the garments. Her hair and eyes, whether it was coincidence or not, was the same colour as her overalls: a deep, dark, mysterious blue.

There was a moment of intense silence between them; it seemed the passive war was going to go on forever. But the new arrival broke it.

"Anyway, you're not the reason I'm here." The woman in blue sighed before looking in another direction as though something suddenly came to her mind, "I'm looking for someone that was around here." Her focus then turned back to Sion, "I noticed you're not reacting in the presence of blood. You became human again?"

Sion sighed at the changing of the subject and tone of the conversation; she was in no condition to fight at the moment, "Unfortunately, Ciel, no I didn't. "

The young woman named Ciel looked away, this time she gave off a message of mixed emotions, "I see….In that case, Sion, you are still the enemy." And with those words she jumped into the air at such a speed Sion didn't see her ascend.

Shiki was running at full speed to school. He had missed two periods so far and time was eroding away at the third. As he ran he noticed someone in the road ahead. The person had landed in the middle the road quickly before leaping off into the air. But what caught Shiki's eyes more is that she was clothed in purple.

_Sion?_

Before he could realise, he was running without paying attention on where he was going and bumped into someone, he was knocked while the other person stayed standing. He endured the pain, but someone's voice made him forget about it.

"Shiki? What are you doing out of school?"

He looked up to see someone he wasn't expecting, "Ah! Ciel-senpai! Sorry for knocking into you like that. I should've paid attention to where I was going." He said a slightly nervous laugh.

She offered him a helping hand and spoke with a kind smile, "It's fine, and you know what to do next time. OK?"

He replied with a nod and smile.

The woman that he had walked into was a fellow classmate of his who was exceptional in all subjects. She had deep, short blue hair and dazzling matching colour eyes that were always over looked due to her wearing glasses. She also wore the girls' uniform of the school, a yellow sleeveless top, a white shirt underneath and a red tie. They also wore a blue skirt as well as white stockings and black shoes. Shiki wore the boys, which was a blue jacket and trousers and a white shirt underneath, footwear were left to the student. Shiki wore white comfortable trainers with red strips.

Shiki took Ciel's hand and she heaved him up without a struggle.

"What are you doing out of school?" Ciel asked while she watched him dust himself off.

"Oh, I had another anaemic attack. This one was bad, so I was taken home." Shiki replied.

They began to walk together.

"What about you, senpai? Why aren't you in school?"

"Well, I had affairs to sort out at home. They were urgent and unexpected, so I was allowed to be excused."

"I see."

"So, who took you home? I'm guessing it's that girl you're around with all the time. I saw you with her."

Shiki was caught off guard, "Um…Well…Yeah, she did…I guess."

"Well, I think you should stay away from her."

Shiki stopped; Ciel carried on, but stopped after a few steps. Her tone began to lean towards a serious one.

"She's bad news, Shiki. Hang around her for too long and something will happen. Something that neither of us wants or needs right now…"

A very intense silence formed.

Shiki stared at her. Some weird gut feeling was telling him that she wasn't lying. His mouth was dry, but he still managed to speak, "How do you know…?"

Ciel turned and decimated the thick situation with a light hearted smile, "I don't know. Female intuition, I guess…"

Shiki sighed through a small, airy laugh.

Shiki peered into the class through the glass on the door. He sighed slightly before knocking on the door and opening the door upon the teacher's response.

"Good morning, Tohno. I was told why you were absent. Please, sit down." The teacher said before carrying on speaking aloud to the class.

He took his usual seat next to the window and setting up his equipment, when he realised the person next to him was staring at him.

He took a quick a glance and saw who it was, "morning, Arihiko," Shiki said before continuing.

The person didn't reply they sat there staring with a grin on his face.

Shiki noticed again, "What…?" He said with a nervous laugh.

"I saw you. You didn't need more or less the whole morning off, did you?" Arihiko replied said his knowing green eyes. His red hair had been shaven short enough for a small coat to lay over it.

Slightly shocked at the chances of him and Arcueid being seen, he lied, "I don't know what you're talking about?"

Arihiko sniggered, "You're a book, y'know that Shiki? If you're not ready to tell me about her, it's cool."

Shiki laughed.

The teacher took action, "Can you two at the back quieten down, please?"

The bell went signifying the end of the day. Shiki took a route to Arcueid's small apartment and knocked on the door. She greeted him with a smile before letting him in.

Shiki placed his bag to one side before sitting on the couch and waiting for Arcueid. She came in holding a box with gloves on. She kneeled on the other side of the table and opened the box and placed the item on the table. The item itself was wrapped in foil; Arcueid peeled it away, revealing a piece of stone with engraving and making all over it.


	3. CHAPTER 3: REVELATION

**CHAPTER 3: REVELATION**

The marking suddenly glowed red then brightened into a light blue colour, a low hum could also be heard.

Akiha flinched back in surprise, while Kohaku and Hisui peered in.

"What exactly is this?" Akiha said breathlessly with surprise.

Hisui stared at it, "I am not too sure, Lady Akiha. It does not look too safe."

Kohaku looked back at Akiha, "And where did you say you found this?"

"I found it on the path when I walking my usual route home. It was a weird alluring stone… I needed to keep it with me." Akiha stared, not wanting to turn away, but not wanting to continue.

Shiki stared at Arcueid, "Wow…That's a pretty weird stone if it makes you feel like that."

He went to touch it; his hand was centimetres away from it when he felt like he was slipping away.

"Shiki!" Arcueid screamed.

Kohaku took a few steps back, "L-Lady A-Akiha, um, you're hair it's…"

Akiha, with her back turned, replied, "I know, Kohaku. And this is the way I like it." She turned around to reveal her eyes had become a striking light blue colour.

She faced Kohaku and walked towards her while rubbing her hands.

Kohaku walked back, nervously laughing. She knew what was coming and could do nothing but accept it. Hisui did nothing and watched the scene unfold.

Akiha hand was almost at Kohaku neck, "Um, don't overdo it please, Lady Akiha." She said with a nervous laugh afterwards.

Suddenly, the roof caved in. A large winged creature snatched Akiha and the glowing stone before flying away into the sky with a monstrous cry.

"Lady Akiha!" They both cried in unison.

But they're attitude quickly switched from worried to determined.

"Hisui, we can still do it, right?" Kohaku said giving a meaningful grin.

Hisui nodded and dived towards her sister.

Kohaku grabbed Hisui by the arms and swung her twice with amazing power and threw her through the same hole the creature entered. Hisui soared through the air at such a speed she didn't look as though she was going to come down.

Kohaku reached inside her kimono robes and took out a bottle and dropped it on the floor. It instantly whipped up a blanket of smoke and when it cleared Kohaku was wearing and cloak with a hood that covered her eyes, she also held a straw broom in her left hand. Kohaku hopped on her broom and zoomed off after her sister and master.

Shiki slumped over the table.

"Shiki!" Arcueid screamed. She went to check up on him, but a something came through the roof. Arcueid shielded herself from the rubble. When it cleared, Shiki and the stone were gone. She sensed danger and readied herself to get Shiki away from it. She jumped through the hole the intruder entered. It is at these times she revelled being a vampire. Vampires are naturally superior to humans in all aspects, so jumping great distances was a breeze for Arcueid.

She landed on the roof of her block. She scanned the area to see that the thing that took Shiki was a dark grey human shape giant that was big enough to easily carry all of Shiki in his hand. By the looks of it had no facial features. Even from a far distance Arcueid could see that Shiki was still unconscious. It wasn't too far away and she was slightly amazed at the fact the people around it weren't panicking or anything, strangely enough it was leaving no lends or marks on the ground below or the buildings around it. What exactly was this thing?

Arcueid jumped from her roof and landed on its shoulder. She opened her hand and stretched out her fingers, they suddenly became claw like, sharp enough to pierce any material. With a swift yet powerful thrust to the giant figure's shoulder, causing it to rear its head in pain and let go of Shiki. With amazing agility she grabbed the falling Shiki and placed him softly on a roof. Arcueid looked up and went for it again, but it was not anywhere to be found…

Shiki awoke softly and as he lay there he saw a figure wearing blue in front of him. It looked around his age, perhaps a bit older. He noticed another figure walking towards the unconscious person slowly. He suddenly got the urge to get up and did so; the walking figure turned around and noticed him.

"Hm? Oh, long time no see, Shiki." The figure spoke with a smooth, very calm voice, so calm it could be perceived as arrogance, there was also a sense of malice in it.

His vision cleared and he gasped in shock.

The scene around him was frozen. He could see himself on the ground, unconscious. Arcueid standing next to him, looking around for something and a grey figure behind her with a drill like spear as its arm and aimed for her back. And finally, the person he hadn't seen in a long time, someone he didn't want to see.

He calmed himself and thought rationally.

The scene was frozen by the looks of it, so saving Arcueid wasn't a priority right now. It would make sense to try and get answers from the only person who is able to.

Shiki sighed and brushed away the other person's comment and glared for a few moments. The person wore the same clothes and had the same hair Shiki, he even looked significantly like him, but there was one difference. This other Shiki had fierce powerful eyes, they didn't miss anything; nothing could get past them. Not only that, but they had become a yellowy-grey colour, the pupils had also become slits.

Shiki spoke, "What's going on?"

The figure laughed, "You're asking the wrong person, Shiki. I was about to take over when you woke up. This usually happens when you're in the presence of strong power. Your body usually can't handle it and slips out of consciousness and that's when I step in, but for some reason you're awake right now. I'm presuming something's not right."

"I'm confused as you are." Shiki replied, not taking his eyes off the other figure.

"But let me clear them up first." A smile suddenly grew on the other Shiki's face and he licked his lips, "It'll be over in a second."

"No." The real Shiki stepped forward; he glared at the figure again, mentally cursing his weakness, "Kill the monster. Lay a finger on her, Nanaya, I swear I'll - "

"What? Kill me? Don't be stupid, Shiki." The other Shiki known as Nanaya walked over to the unconscious body and placed his hands over Shiki's head. In a flash of light he was gone…

Arcueid scanned the area. This thing was nowhere to be found. Was it defeated? Something inside told her that was not true.

Behind her.

She spun around and there it was. It wielding a drill like weapon the spun at such speeds it generated wind. But by the looks of things she had turned around too late, the weapon was centimetres away from her face, and there was no way she could react on time with her current power, so she decided to endure it.

Nothing came.

She loosened up and checked what happened.

The thing had stopped completely. Nothing about it was moving.

A voice caught her attention, "You should take care of yourself better. Someone isn't always going to be there."

She was taken aback. Shiki was conscious, yet somehow saved her… But this wasn't the Shiki she knew.

Shiki looked down at her as he stood on the unanimated being. She clipped his knife shut and instantly the being got sliced into hundreds of pieces. Shiki landed on the ground and he stared at her, he was slightly trembling. Arcueid wanted to withdraw from him, it was like he had become a foul shadow that was creeping over her, taking away everything happy she had in her life.

Shiki slowly blinked; he had a look of slight anger in his face. He closed his eyes and his body suddenly slumped forward and stood up straight again. He looked around and realised what happened when he saw the pieces of the monster that was about to attack Arcueid and sighed.

"Thank goodness." Shiki looked up at Arcueid, "Are you OK?"

She nodded because she still speechless at what she just saw. She was still pondering what that was that protected her from the creature.

Was it Shiki or not?

The Shiki that saved her looked like Shiki, but the eyes… Those eyes despised for being that she was.

Shiki reached into his pocket and put on his glasses, they were still in perfect condition, as expected. This strange monster's appearance confirmed something was happening; the increase of his anaemic attacks, the stone and the creature and his meeting with Nanaya; who, he thought, he would never see again.

Kohaku raced after the creature and her sister. She wasn't too sure what was going on, she just guessed some hot-aired, half-witted villains trying to take over the world one way or another.

The living gargoyle was coming into view and fast. She could see Hisui hanging on to a flapping wing and trying to cause some damage by digging at it with automatic whisk. Kohaku zoomed past, grabbed Hisui and placed her on the back of her broom.

"I am assuming you have a plan?" Hisui guessed as it must be the reason she made the distance with the thing that has their master.

"Yeah! Of course I do." She held out a green glass bottle for her sister to see.

"I see. It is made out of stone, sister. I do not think it will work very well…"

"I know what I'm doing! Trust me."

Kohaku threw the bottle and hit the animate creature all over the back and wings, the flames burst to life and thrived on the air but not before long the flames changed to a vivid red then extinguished instantly.

Kohaku broke into applause, "Well done, Lady Akiha! Well done! Bravo!"

While Hisui watched carefully. The fist that Akiha lay trapped began to glow, the very stone the creature was made out of began to melt. The creature didn't hesitate; it quickly threw Akiha to the other hand and threw her into the horizon with incredible strength. Seconds later it crumbled.

Hisui gasped, while Kohaku sighed.

"How annoying… Hold tight, Hisui. We gotta chase her down…" Kohaku looked suddenly bored before dashing after her master.


	4. CHAPTER 4: INCITEMENT

**CHAPTER 4: INCITEMENT**

Akiha soared through the air.

She remained lying down; no force of nature was taking effect on her, shooting through the air at the same speed of that of a jet, in the world of clouds and clear sky. Eventually a castle came into view, it very foundations were the clouds themselves, however it was not made of the same material.

It contrastingly stuck out of the clouds with its dark coloured bricks. Its colour was somewhere between blue and grey. Its structure was also not similar to any other castle in the mortal realm. It had a large dome like base with five towers abruptly coming out of it. It much resembled the shape of a right human hand as it had a smaller tower ascending out the sides resembling the thumb, where the other four rose out of the top resembling the other four fingers, and also mimicking their size order.

Akiha turned through the air. She was now being directed by something to a certain direction. The force drew her to the tower that would be the index finger; a light could be seen at the tip. The light was deep blood red; the glass was stained with it. She approached the window and her body became vertical. Her arms opened and her head fell back as she unconsciously accepted what was about to happen to her. Her body eased towards the window, as she made contact with the window it rippled, as though it was made out of blood itself.

When she appeared on the other side gravity played its role, headed to wards the ground, but arms caught her.

"Ah, my maiden. The queen of my heart… You have come to me at last." A young handsome man that looked roughly the same age as Akiha herself. He wore a masquerade mask over his face, the lens were covered by a deep colour. His light brown hair fell on his shoulders in an excellent manner. His face was smooth, high in quality to the last curve.

Her sense came around and she heard his voice. She stared without breathing… She went to speak, but was interrupted by his finger on her lips.

"Shh. No conversation needs to take place. We are together and that is all that matters." He said with a soft whisper. His voice brushed against her whole body. She didn't fight it. She was now his. He leaned in and replaced the finger on her lips with his own. The feeling was beyond her. It was so immense that no one could resist…

His fingers ran through Akiha's hair with the softest touch, it blended from a black to striking scarlet colour. They parted and he smiled. She smiled back…

Sion jumped from building to building almost naturally. Her hunt for 'The Strong Ones' has lasted for two days now and nothing has happened. Their locations are all over the place, they'll be within eye shot the next they'll be gone and she'll sense them somewhere else. She stopped on the roof a petrol station and glanced around. Right then she heard it; a voice that danced with the wind, her unnatural sense picked it up.

"Release and awaken…Awaken and release…The Lust of Blood…Flow..."

Faster than her mind could comprehend the words a sharp pain kicked in her mind. The Vampire Seed's shrivelled roots came to life and began to sink deeply into her mind the strongest she had felt in a long time.

Sion tried to take control. She realised that she was screaming in pain and crouched on the ground, almost regurgitating in pain. She focused into controlling one hand as it was all she needed. She opened her eyes only to find the transformation taking effect as her fingers were noticeably claw like. She pushed worries aside and forced the trembling hand into her inside pocket and somehow managed to grasp the serum and stab it into her arm. The roots began to shrink again, the pain began to dwindle and control slowly came back to her. Her vision blurred heavily before clearing again.

She lay there for a few seconds taking deep breathes and letting her body recover from the ordeal it just endured. It wasn't long till her senses kicked back in and she could locate them. The something appeared on her radar three sources were giving off a weird signal, some sort of Blood Lust Trigger. Also by the looks of it, it happened in pulses, unfortunately she had yet to figure the time gap between them. The sources were set in place and unmoving, somehow she had figured that out. After gathering herself, Sion left to find them, as she shot off from the roof she noticed that she had attracted a crowd due to her screaming. Being prepared for situation like this, she reached into her wide arsenal and threw a grenade the exploded with not force, but with a flash erased the people's memories of the last hour or so. While she soared she began to get her log ready…

Arcueid jumped from building with Shiki on her back. She, too, had picked up the strong beings that had appeared in the area.

Unfortunately, Shiki didn't have much of an option when it came to the travel arrangements, he would've happily tried to run to catch up with her first, but knowing Arcueid, her way somehow overruled his when it came to things like this.

Suddenly he noticed someone.

"Wait. Arcueid, can you see that person over there?" He asked with his eyes locked in position.

"Um, which way? Which way?" She asked as she somehow managed to look around desperately and jumping building at high speeds.

"This way…To your right." He replied.

She looked, "Ah, I see them. It's a woman…in purple? Wow…"

This 'woman in purple's face flashed in Shiki's mind, "We have to get to her."

Arcueid smiled, "Alright. Hold on tight!"

To Shiki's surprise Arcueid jumped higher than usual and aimed her landing spot into the middle of a packed shopping district. A few people noticed and ran. She landed with extra effort causing cracks in the squared cemented floor and boosted off higher using the extra fall distance as help. Arcueid propelled herself slightly in front of the purple woman, who was also using roofs as a way of undisturbed travel.

She landed and stopped, Shiki began to wave with both hands. "Sion! Over here!"

Sion looked and tilted her head in slight confusion at the sight of a woman carrying an adolescent male. One would think it was meant to be the other way around? But then she realised who the people were; a kind youth that helped her out before and a vampire with legendary power.

She met up with them in hope of finding answers.

"Hey Sion, what are you doing here?" Shiki asked, he wasn't expecting to see her again.

Just like before, Sion kept her calm, grandeur demeanour, "The same reason you are here Tohno, to figure what exactly is going on." She looked at the female that carried Shiki, "hello Arcueid Brunestud, it is nice to see you are well."

Arcueid simply grinned back.

Nothing about Sion had changed in the last six months. Her formal, yet well equipped purple gear she wore constantly. It was a strange mix between a suite and a police's uniform. The formal collar wear, the beret the looked as though it sole use was to display where she came from, the buttoned shirt that neatly covered her shorts. Shiki guessed they were shorts to give the wearer freedom and flexibility; she wore long stockings that reached the edge of the shorts and shoes that were used for everyday. Nothing about her hinted that she was skilled person in all sorts of combat and weaponry, the weapon she found most efficient was her whip, if it was called that as it was less that a millimetre thick, and her pistol that fired all sorts of rounds.

Ciel watched the trio.

Glared at the fact that Shiki was hanging around the two people she had certain distaste for. The sudden arrival of mysterious events had her working harder than usual, powerful mysterious beings disappear and reappearing all over the place.

Except the one she found in the park before the encounter with Sion. This… being was different anything she had seen before. A certain aura was around it which couldn't be perceived, but could see the effects; life withering whenever it was touched by this thing, inanimate objects crumbling at the brush of it clothes. This sort of being hadn't been mentioned to her before by her superiors. However, they were they had to be stopped now, before things escalate further. With that she shot into the sky to continue her –

There it was! Another trigger, this time the scale was beyond measurement; the area of effect had easily consumed the whole town. Though it had no effect on her she could feel it all around her; a dark humidity that spared crept into every corner and opening. This time was different, its source was noticeable, a doorway of sorts. This was her chance, and now was the only time to do it.

Shiki felt his whole body fall to the ground. He didn't feel the pain, strangely.

He looked up and his feelings suddenly darkened. The scene had frozen, his physical body had not been knocked to the ground, it was his consciousness. Something had knocked him out specifically, to let his other side in.

"Nanaya! What are you doing!?" He shouted, he tried to get up, but couldn't.

"Yes! Yes, this it! Now's the time…You can't stop me now Shiki with your pathetic emotions. It's all mine!" Nanaya's eyes glowed with malicious excitement. His dark wishes was going to be fulfilled, and no one could stop him, if they tried he would simply cut them down and relish the splatter of their blood.

Nanaya stepped up to the Shiki's body that remained frozen in time and stepped into it as though it was a set up piece of armour and all he needed to was step inside. Shiki watched with a tighten jaw and fist before becoming heavy and blacking out. Be coming nothing more than a memory at the back of the mind.

The scene's mood changed drastically. Arcueid looked at Shiki and knew instantly, she grabbed his arm as he drew for his knife; the intention was clear.

Arcueid quickly turned to Sion, "Run! Get aw -"

One hand covered Sion's face, blood leaking from in between her fingers, sinister laughing could be heard creeping in.

Arcueid cursed. She threw Shiki off the building they were on, moments before blocking Sion's stab aimed at her throat. Sion smiled, blood leaking from her crimson eyes and mouth that was open with enjoyment. Sion suddenly looked to the left with a face of shock before ripping from Arcueid's grip and jumping off the building.

She went to pursue, but realised a potentially bigger threat was behind, running up the building for her. By the time she turned Shiki was aiming a stab at her right calf, she guessed a clear line was visible there.

The memory of their last encounter was still clear in her mind, the cold knife that made her body shatter with one stab. The pain was instant and intense until the end; she could feel every part of her body fall apart, all at the hands of a human adolescent male.

She continued to dodge his fatal slashes; a mere graze may result in a loss of a limb or chunk of flesh.

He tried again for her stomach, she blocked and went for out counterattack, but the Shiki that wanted to kill her just then faded away on the wind. He was behind her as she fell for his feint attack. She replied with a fist that aimed at the top of his head; a fatal blow for a human from some with her strength.

This violent Shiki dodged. He jumped away and took a quick breather, the idea of death just flashed before him. He placed one hand in his pocket and a smirk appeared on his face.

"You nearly killed me, vampire. You don't want to kill such a sweet loving boy, do you?"

"You are not Shiki!" For the first time in a long while she could feel anger begin to boil within, its steam beginning to spread around.

"…Whatever. You're going to die. This body has killed you before and it can kill you again, if I truly want it." He begun to flip the knife in the air and catch with immense skill.

Her fist clenched.

The anger reached her powers; her eyes began to glow a royal gold colour and her pupils become nothing more than slits.

She released the clenched fist and the corner of the building Nanaya was standing on exploded, the screams of nearby civilians were heard nearby.

The rocks began to shatter and were coming towards her direction, but she knew it wasn't from the cause of the explosion.

She merely dodged the rocks, looked around for the main enemy. To her side, aiming for her right hip…but he had stopped.

"…What!?"

Several chains had wrapped around Nanaya; one on both his wrists, one on the neck and waist and two chains on both ankles.

With a wave of her arm, the air around the chains exploded, throwing Nanaya off the edge. She walked and looked of the edge watching him smiling as he fell. He suddenly stopped as he stuck his knife in the building and he hung there for a second, before getting into the position of pushing of the building, and looking up at Arcueid smirking.

"I guess I'll see on the other plane, vampire."

He removed his knife from the building and pushed off the building disappearing in speed. Nanaya left before her eyes.

She sighed, the tension broke away and her eyes lost their imperial gleam… and tears replaced them. The idea of killing Shiki was too much. She looked up to find to find the gate to another worldly plane gazing back at her, expanding in size slowly. Invisible to the human eye. She went to dive off the building when a person appeared right next to her.

"Arcueid, I'll be disappointed if I don't see you there…"

Ciel had appeared right next to her, she too was gazing at the rip in between the two worlds.

Arcueid turned and smiled at the idea of a challenge, "Likewise…" But the smile faded and she looked back at the blood red fluxing rip, "But lives are at stake. Now isn't the time to settle things."

Ciel looked down in response, leaving in the same way as she arrived, without a sound.

A deep breath and Arcueid was off. She dived into the streets below head first, switching position moments before hitting the ground and shooting off into the sky with immense power. She landed in the park, and began to run towards the rip. As she got closer she began to lose her senses; first taste, soon after was smell, then hearing…then touch, continually told herself to run…then sight. Her vision became blurred then blacked out.


End file.
